Karel Tutsch Collection

The collection of more than 1 300 works is an exclusive document of collecting art since the 1980s and includes major works of Czech art from the period between modernism and postmodernism by important artists such as Jiří Načeradský, Jiří Sopko, Antonín Střížek, Naděžda Plíšková or Alena Kučerová. Karel Tutsch was an art collector based in Brno, who also specialized in collecting conceptual art by artists such as Jiří Kovanda, Jiří David or Ján Mančuška. The collection also includes foreign artists such as Andrew Gilbert, Jasper Joffe and Thomas Helbig.

From 1986 to 2008, Karel Tutsch ran Na bidýlku Gallery in Brno, which was the oldest private art gallery in our country. A total of 169 events were held there. The gallery quickly rose to be an important place for Czech artists to meet and hosted both official and unofficial gatherings. It was set up in a small loft apartment in Václavská Street in Brno. For a few years, it was practically an underground venue. After 1989, it often served as a replacement for official galleries and institutions as any art exhibitions were still very rare.

The first exhibition at Na bidýlku Gallery was held in 1986, presenting works of Jiří Načeradský. In addition to well established unofficial artists, the gallery focused its collecting activities on the emerging generation of postmodern artist, mostly members of  Tvrdohlaví artistic group. It also focused on up-and-coming artists such as Ján Mančuška, Eva Koťátková, Tomáš Vaněk. The gallery also exhibited site-specific installations by Jiří David and Jiří Kovanda, a rare experiment indeed in the late 1980s Czech art scene. 1990s saw Karel Tutsch’s interest in artists from abroad, mainly from Germany (André Butzer, Thomas Helbig, Markus Selg or Christian Macketanz).

An online catalogue of nearly 1,300 paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures, objects, incomplete conceptual installations, pieces used in performances at private views, and rarities is available on the GMU website.